Author: Mike Balof

A retired Air Force Master Sergeant, Mike used to lay in bed at night and worry about what would happen if his plant closed or found himself without a job. One day his plant closed. Rather than panic and hysteria (OK, maybe a little) Mike found himself carried away on the adventure of his life. Mike started with the best job he ever had working at Home Depot. He spent 8 years working with job seekers at a local workforce center, helping them to find employment. He then started his own company developing courses, writing books and urging others to follow their own paths into the future. Mike holds a Master of Arts in Adult Education and Training and a Bachelor of Business Management, earned through the University of Phoenix and an AAS degree in Electronics Systems Technology from the Community College of the Air Force. Mike is a member of the Delta Mu Delta Business Honor Society.

Day One

My wife and I are not sick.  We fit into the age groups and categories that call for us to take precautions against the virus that is going around.  We need to avoid crowds and public gatherings as much as possible.  We need to stay at home as much as possible.

I am lucky in the fact that I can work from anywhere I can get to a Wi-Fi signal.  My wife is a homebody and does not get around very well.  We can survive this pretty well.

I am not going to drown you in a monotonous day-to-Day report as to what is going on. Yet if exciting things do happen, say in the spirit of Father Goose or The Odd Couple, I will keep you informed.  In the meantime, I plan to put out my same daily blogs on process improvement and positive change. 

Right now, I am working on when and how to go out to get some perishables, such as milk.  I have some great plans for the next two weeks and will even try sneaking out to the office. It is also private.  No people, just a change in scenery.

We hope everyone is safe and will remain so.  We are keeping you all in the positive thoughts.  Take care of yourselves, and we will all get through this.

Thank you for being with me today.  I hope to be with you again tomorrow.

Hi everyone,

I know that the pandemic we are facing right now can be scary.  Many would like to hop in a hole and pull the opening in after them.  Yet, that is not realistic.  We need to eat, pay bills, do our chores, and do our best to live our lives. 

We also need to stay up on top of the real news.  There is a CV-19 Dashboard at https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/coronavirus.  There is a link on the page where you will find the current infection numbers and an overall view.  You can also receive useful information from credible agencies on the web.  One of the best defenses is good knowledge about something.

If you are worried about food, and other necessities, you can shop many of your larger stores on-line and have the items delivered to your home.  Or, stores can have an order ready for you, so you can drive by and pick it up.  You can pay many bills via the internet.  You can use call-in services such as health advisors, and you can call some clinics or have an appointment over the Internet.

I do not have much to offer. I do have a small life coaching practice.  I do a lot of my training, studying, and even practice live sessions over the internet. Also, anyone worried right now can email me, and we can set up a live meeting on Zoom.com or FaceTime to talk about things.  During this crisis, I am not going to charge anyone for any of the times they talk with me. No matter who you are, we are a team, and we will get through this together.    

As a life coach, I am a certified practitioner.  My goal is to help people.  To do this, we look at where we are and what is happening around us.  Then we work at how we can get to the future we desire.  

I only speak English.  I know people in 67 countries read my blog, so I imagine there are other English speakers out there.  To do this, you will need an internet signal and the capabilities to use Zoom.com or facetime.  Patience, as we start this adventure, is another virtue that helps.

The important thing is that we stay calm, know the facts, and make it to the other side of this, putting it behind us.  We have survived worse in the history of the world.  And, with a little help from above, we will survive this.

I cannot offer much. I do believe that a caring ear and a good discussion can often be great medicine.  If you would like to talk, please contact me.

Mike balof

Reveille.Rocks Life Coaching

mikeb@reveille.rocks

Website:  www.reveille.rocks

Finding A Great Hidden Employee

If you are going to do something, take ownership, and do it right.  If you do not want to do something, do not do it.  Own your decision, either way, you choose.  To not be in control of yourself, you usually will end up in the act of passive-aggression, and at that point, no one wins or gets what they want.

If you are a person who tends to be passive-aggressive, you are not treating yourself very well.  You are volunteering for what you hate, just to please others, or you are letting others push you into actions in which you want no part.  Either way, you are unable to give an honest attempt to complete the task with a decisive victory.

If you become forced into a position that may become passive-aggressive, would it not be better to recuse yourself and let the task owner find someone who could do a better job?   While doing this, you are showing a better understanding of yourself, and others are seeing that you are a person of good stature who knows themselves and will not let others push work on them just because they are easy marks.

If you are giving jobs to people and you have someone who is often passive-aggressive, would it not be useful to hand essential tasks to others that would possibly cause fewer problems? Do not shut the passive-aggressive person entirely out of the loop.  Instead, work with the employee to find out what their real skills and passions are.  Give them jobs that relate to those skills and passions and encourage them.  You may just find an outstanding employee that you never knew you had.

Thank you for being with me today.  I hope to be with you tomorrow.

Live Wisely

Wise people do not shrink in fear of what they do not know.  Nor do the wise foolishly walk into dangers they don’t know anything concerning.  The wise become knowledgeable on many things that pertain to them.  They believe in continual learning and the fact that actual knowledge is where it is.

I urge you to be wise.  I am not talking about degrees and accolades.  Listen, look, and learn.  Do not panic just because others are doing so.  Understand the problems and concerns, determine the causes, and how to keep from being near them.  Do not let others tell you the sky is falling, or there is nothing to fear.  We know real-life lies somewhere in the balance.

Learn, study, know, and then decide.  To do anything else would be foolhardy indeed.  We are far to smart for that.  We now live in an age of enlightenment and continuous learning.  No one else can give us pause for that which we already know.

It is up to each person to do what is correct for them.  Each of us needs to act with determination and forethought.  We can do what we need and what we should do.  No one should live in fear or ignorance.

Thank you for being with me today.  I hope to be with you again tomorrow.

Limit Your Fear

I want you to think of your past and the times that you found yourself afraid.  Be honest with yourself and count up the number of times you found fear because of something that could happen that you did not have all the answers to understand. Then, I would like you to count up the number of times you found yourself afraid of something that was happening to you that you completely understood and for which you knew all the relevant information.

I am going to predict the highest number is for the times you did not have all the information. I am not a mind reader, and I could get this wrong, yet 65% of what we worry about (fear) are things that never come true.  Also, the more we know, the better our minds can understand it logically.  If we stay centered in our brain between logic and emotion, we are less likely to panic. 

Panic is a tendency to control stressing events with emotion rather than balancing the process out with facts and logic.  Using a whole mind approach is the best way to prevent panic or harsh actions.    Get the facts, understand what they mean to you, and plan accordingly.

If someone is panicking, it is good to have them understand how close the problem is to them.  Start by asking if the problem is in the person’s personal space (18 inches); if not, then is the problem in their friend space (about three and a half feet). If they cannot see the problem in that distance, go on and ask about the common area (about 10 to 11 feet).  If not, ask if it is within a block or a mile or in the city.  If not, it is easier for them to relax.

When problems come along, it is always good to have someone with you.  Between the two of you, common sense can prevail.  Just make sure you are using your full mind.

Thank you for being with me today.  I hope to be with you again tomorrow.

How to Be Your Keeper

Sometimes in our lives, we have bad things happen to us.  At these times, it is easy to blame others and play the ‘Woe Is Me’ card.  Some expect others to come along and pick them up and make them whole again.  Unfortunately, when the pity card plays once too often, something can crack, and the person can lose themselves in a sea of self-pity.

We must do our best and exhaust our Talents and abilities before asking for others to aid, and do for us.  We have more skills, strength, and talent than we think.  We are the ones who know who we are and what we need.  Handing the role to anyone else unless absolutely necessary would only give us a lesser portion.

Even worse than the lower portion would be the concern that we may not get what we need at all.  We may only receive an idea of what someone else thinks we need.  That is not good for us and not good for the person striving to help us.

We received our talents and a stake in life so that we can go forth and do great things with our abilities.  It is easy at first to hide your skills and ask those with more talents for part of theirs.  The act of doing so, though, short changes you and hurts your abilities.  For talents, like muscles, only grow when stretched and torn through hard work.  Until you put your own talents to the hard tests, you will never know how precious your abilities are to you.

Thank you for being with me today.  I hope to be with you again tomorrow.

Ride Your Power Wave

Surfers ride waves made by the oceans around the world.  To harness the energy of a wave depends not on the water, instead, on the surfer.  It is not easy to move from a prone to standing position on a curved board.  Add to the problem that the board is swaying, and stability is a problem for the surfer.   It is a very daunting action to master.

The surfers can ride the wave by believing they can. Good surfers must practice often and have absolute faith in themselves and their abilities.  It is the skill learned in practice that allows surfers to grow the confidence needed to succeed.  Surfers succeed because they ‘will’ themselves to do so and then practice being better.

The same goes for those pursuing their dreams in other venues of life. First, you need desire.  You need to know what it is you want to do.  And then you need to learn everything you can about the subject.  The more you know on a particular topic, the better you will become in the field. You also have to practice whatever it is as often as you can.

We do not live and work in a vacuum, cut off from others.  Therefore, you must find and exchange knowledge with others who are pursuing the same goals you are.  The first-hand experience you both gain through these meetings helps to spur both of you, and anyone else there, to targets of greater magnitude.

The more you practice, exchange information and ideas, and learn through working to your goals, the more prolific you will become.  You will find yourself riding your wave.  The wave will not be one of water; rather, it will be a power wave created by your work and belief in yourself and those around you.

Thank you for being with me today.  I hope to be with you again soon.

Be Ready

Life is going to throw some good things your way. Unfortunately, you are also going to have some undesired items thrown your way too. You are, though, going to need to know what you really want out of life, so you can react in the right direction towards both the good and the bad.

You are going to need to know what your plans are so that you can react expeditiously. Life will not stick around and wait for you to make a decision. Time is moving forward no matter what you do, and you should be able to react in your best interests. So, the next question I’m sure you’re asking is, “How do I do this?”

You do your best at any point in your life. Know yourself. Know what you like, what you do not, and why.  Know what you have a passion for and what it would take to be good at it.  Good enough to make a living and enjoy the work.  The world will not take time for anyone who is ‘hemming and hawing.’  You need to get out there and do the job.

You can start at any time.  Shirley Temple was an actress as a tot and an ambassador in her latter years.  Grandma Moses was not even discovered for her paintings until she was in her sixties.  Betty White is in her nineties and still going strong.  Their Secret? They did not go home and just sit on the front porch.  They got and stayed active.

If you have given up, you still have two choices you can make right now.  You need to get active, or you need to plan what others might do if you are not around.  At least, that is what the statistics say.  Wonder why women live longer? More action and work in their lives overall.

Not sure where to start?  Talk to a life coach.  Find one you like and will work with you, asking the questions that make you think.  Life coaches do not have you dwelling on your past or crying over what could have been.  They work with you to understand where you are and what you could do if you wanted to.

Life coaches help you understand that limiting beliefs are usually only in your head. You can really do anything you want if you are willing to put the work into getting the results you want. A life coach cannot do it for you, yet, they can be a guide that helps you to get rid of the negatives that stand in your way and help you to reach out to the goals you really desire.

Thank you for being with me today.  I hope to be with you again tomorrow.

 

Do not Dwell

Today we honor our past leaders.  Those who stood tall to shape our country and our society.  Whether good or bad, the presidents were there and tried.  They served in an office with such problems and pitfalls that most people, for many reasons, would never want to hold.

It is important to remember and honor our past.  Our past, good or bad, is what has made us.  We cannot go back and change it.  We can take the lessons learned from that past and strive to create a better future for ourselves.  This does come with a warning of actions that we can all be susceptible to.  Look but don’t Dwell.

Understanding our past helps us to know where the hidden traps are. The snags that can drop us into deep holes or ruts where we cannot find our way out.  To avoid those, we need to keep looking to where we are going, not where we have been.

If you are driving somewhere, you keep your eyes looking out the front window, more than the rear view mirror.  It seems to be safer that way unless you are backing up.  Life does not have a reverse on the stick shift, so, eyes forward.

Wherever you are right now, you have learned knowledge from your past and hopefully developed future plans.  Keep your eye on the future, and you will probably get there.

Thank you for being with me today.  I hope to be with you again tomorrow.

Do Not Talk Yourself Down

Do Not Talk Yourself Down

This week we are looking at the two opposing forces that are inside ourselves and everyone else.  We hold the ability to do many beautiful things. And yet, we also have a strong ability to talk down to ourselves about our good deeds and errors of whatever we did.

I am talking about the ‘would of, could have, and should have’s.’  They are often backed up with phraseology such as ‘if only,’ and the devastating ‘who said you could.’  These phrases can snatch defeat right out of the jaws of victory.

The problem with all of these phrases is that they are beating you up over something you no longer have control over.  You cannot go back in time and change anything.  It happened, and now it is history.  Whatever happened, we have to accept it and take the lessons learned to do something different and possibly better next time the same set of circumstances present themselves.

One of the critical actions in doing this is to change your attitude and vocabulary.  ‘Woulda, shoulda, coulda,’ has got to go.  In its place, we need to install new words. They may include: ‘I will do this the next time that happens,’ ‘I can handle the situation this way,’ I shall not be _______ next time.’

We cannot change the past.  Also, we cannot predict the future.  All we can do is learn positive actions from past scenarios and remember them as we move towards the future.  Look to the future, not the past.  After all, we cannot go back, only forward.

Thank you for being with me today.  I hope to be with you again tomorrow.